The Metals of Antiquity are the seven metals identified and used by humans in Europe and the Middle East in prehistoric times. They are gold, silver, copper, tin, lead, iron, and mercury.
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These are the metals used in early metallurgy and subsequent alchemy. One of the goals of alchemy was to turn base metals (like lead) into noble metals (like gold).
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Symbolic Meanings of the Metals
Each metal corresponds to a celestial body, symbol and day of the week. In combination, such as fused into an amulet, they've been used to protect against disease.
Gold - Sun ☉︎ Sunday
Has any metal aroused the passions so much as gold? On Earth, gold appears in rock ores formed from the Precambrian time, the earliest period of the Earth's formation. The first known use of gold was for spiritual purposes.
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Pure gold is edible, sometimes used in cuisine. German liqueurs Goldwasser, a root and herb drink, and Goldschläger, a cinnamon Schnapps contain flakes of gold. Gold is associated with the 50th anniversary.
The spiritual meaning of gold includes purity, wisdom and enlightenment. Gold is associated with the divine and transformation. Like silver it's a metal of attraction and lucky in business and love.
Silver - Moon ☾ Monday
Silver has the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. It was first used as money, jewelry and ornaments and not considered a candidate for metallurgy studies due to its poor structural strength.
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The earliest known coins come from the kingdom of Lydia in Asia Minor around 600 BCE. They're made of electrum, a naturally occurring alloy of gold and silver. Silver is associated with the 25th anniversary.
In folklore, silver has mystic powers. Silver represents magic of the moon and women. It's a mirror of the soul, allowing those who look into its reflective light to see the truth. It's a symbol of elemental water, intuition, dreams, flow of prosperity.
Iron - Mars ♂ Tuesday
The most common element on Earth, iron forms much of Earth's inner and outer core. Humans learned to extract iron from ore in Eurasia in about 2000 BCE. Iron weapons and tools replaced those of copper alloys. Mass production of tools and weapons, and iron alloys like steel, mark the Iron Age in history.
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Iron is the popular symbol of strength, fortitude, honor, courage and confidence. It gives power and the knowledge to use it wisely. The 11th anniversary is associated with steel, an alloy of iron and carbon.
Traditionally, iron is known to dispel the power of malevolent fairies, witches, nixies and other creatures of the supernatural. An iron knife buried beneath the doorstep prevents evil magic from entering.
Mercury - Mercury ☿ Wednesday
Also called quicksilver, mercury is the only metal known to be liquid at room temperature. From the Renaissance it was suggested for treating syphilis. In raw form, mercury is found in the element cinnabar as a bright or brick red ore, which could be ground up to create the color vermillion. Paleolithic cave paintings of 30,000 years ago in Spain and France use cinnabar.
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Mercury was known by the ancient Egyptians before 1500 BCE. The first Emperor of unified China died after consuming an alchemic mixture of mercury and jade, said to be the elixir of life. Finding an Elixir of Life was one of the common goals of alchemists around the world.
Spiritually the metal mercury represents human consciousness and the human spirit. Because of its liquid nature, mercury was thought to have supernatural powers.
Tin - Jupiter ♃ Thursday
A soft, silvery, malleable metal, tin was often used in alloys. Bronze, of 1⁄8 tin and 7⁄8 copper, was popular for tools and weapons as early as 3000 BCE. Another tin alloy was pewter, made of 85 - 90% tin with another metal or alloy. Polished, tin is a protective coat for other metals, and also used in mirrors.
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Extraction and use of tin dates back to the early Bronze Age. It replaced copper in alloys due to high content of arsenic found with copper. Tin occurs most commonly in the ore cassiterite.
Spiritually tin is a metal of health, wealth and effortless prosperity. Associated with Jupiter, tin relates to transcendence and higher mental planes. Tin vibrates to the sacral chakra, which rules sexuality, creative expression and emotions. Tin is the metal of the 10th Anniversary due to its resilience, consistency and inability to rust.
Copper - Venus ♀ Friday
Copper is one of the few metals occurring in nature in usable metallic form, also known as native metals. Copper is sacred to Roman Goddess Venus and ruled by planet Venus. In the Roman era, copper mines were established in Cyprus. The metal name copper is derived from the word Cyprus.
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Copper is essential to all living things. In molluscs and crustaceans, blood is copper-based and appears blue, in contrast to the red iron-based blood of other animals. A soft metal, copper is often used in artwork and metal alloys. Bronze is a copper-tin alloy and brass combines copper and zinc.
A metal of balance and health, copper relates to positive energy of the spiritual world. Copper cleanses the area of negative energies and conducts bright feelings of optimism and positivity. Copper corresponds to calmness and clarity of mind to define the best path to take. Copper is associated with the 7th anniversary.
Lead - Saturn ♄ Saturday
A heavy metal, lead is denser than most materials. Lead is toxic even in small amounts. Lead poisoning through pipes and drinking vessels is thought by some to be a contributing factor in the fall of the Roman Empire.
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A neurotoxin, lead builds up in bones and soft tissues. Among other effects it damages the nervous system and can cause neurological disorders from behavioral problems to brain damage.
Lead is often found combined with sulfur. It rarely occurs in native metallic form. In alchemy, lead is the personification of the ego. which must be purified to free the soul. Alchemists believe lead to be the oldest of metals. It's a metal of transmutation and resurrection. Lead corresponds with connection to the deepest unconscious self, meditation and grounding.
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